How to Say Dates and Times in Japanese

When making plans, appointments, and travel arrangements in Japanese-speaking countries, you need to be able to state dates and other calendar terms in Japanese. Understanding the days of the week, the months of the year, and how to tell time in Japanese can help you to avoid confusion.

Days of the week

The Japanese names for the days of the week (shee-chee-yooo) (literally, the Seven Luminaries) are quite different from their English counterparts. The word for each day begins with the name of an element and ends with yôbi the Japanese word for day.

Other phrases used to indicate the days of the week include:

kyô (kyohh) (today)

kinô (kee-nohh) (yesterday)

ashita (ah-shee-tah) (tomorrow)

In Japanese, the words for the months of the year are based on the numbers 1–12 and end in the Japanese word for month: gatsu.

ichi-gatsu (ee-chee-gah-tsoo) (January)

ni-gatsu (nee-gah-tsoo) (February)

san-gatsu (sahn-gah-tsoo) (March)

shi-gatsu (shee-gah-tsoo) (April)

go-gatsu (goh-gah-tsoo) (May)

roku-gatsu (roh-coo-gah-tsoo) (June)

shichi-gatsu (shee-chee-gah-tsoo) (July)

hachi-gatsu (hah-chee-gah-tsoo) (August)

ku-gatsu (coo-gah-tsoo) (September)

jū-gatsu (juuu-gah-tsoo) (October)

jūichi-gatsu (juuu-ee-chee-gah-tsoo) (November)

jūni-gatsu (juuu-ni-gah-tsoo) (December)

Days of the month

When referring to the days of the month in Japanese, you'll see that they are full of irregularities:

You can use the following phrases as a guide when talking about dates in Japanese:

• Kyô wa nan-nichi desu ka. (What is today's date?)

• Kyô wa jûroku-nichi desu. (Today is the 16th.)

• Kyô wa nanyôbi desu ka. (What day is it today?)

• Getsuyôbi desu. (It's Monday.)

Telling time

The time of day can be described in general terms or specific times. The following words can be used to describe the general time of day:

asa (ah-sah) (morning)

hiru (hee-roo) (noon)

gogo (goh-goh) (afternoon)

ban (bahn) (evening)

yoru (yoh-roo) (night)

When expressing time between the hours, use these terms to break things down:

ji (o'clock)

jikan (hour)

gozen (a.m.)

gogo (p.m.)

yíkèzhōng (quarter hour)

fun (minute)

byō (second)

han (half)

Japanese commonly uses the 24-hour clock for all official listings, such as plane and train schedules. For every hour after 12 noon, just add an hour. So 2:15 p.m. is 14:15 (jūyo-ji jūgo-fun).

When you want to know a specific time of day, you can ask Ima nan-ji desu ka. (What time is it now?) The following are some examples of specific times.

You can use the following phrases as a guide when talking about time in Japanese:

• Jūichi-ji jūgo-fun desu. (It's 11:15.)

• Nan-ji kara desu ka. (From what time?)

• Nan-ji made desu ka. (Until what time?)

• Ni-ji kara go-ji made desu. (It's from 2 to 5.)

• Nan-ji ni demasu ka. (At what time are you leaving?)

• San-ji ni demasu. (I'll leave at 3.)

• Nan-jikan kakarimasu ka. (How many hours does it take?)

• Ni-jikan kakarimasu. (It takes two hours.)

Language Phrases Glossary

accusative case

When noun or pronoun is the direct object of the verb of the sentence, you are required to switch to the accusative case ending.

Language Phrases Glossary

dative case

When noun or pronoun is the indirect object of the verb of the sentence, you are required to switch to the dative case ending.

Language Phrases Glossary

genitive case

When the noun or pronoun indicates possession, you are required switch to the genitive case ending.

Language Phrases Glossary

instrumental case

A Russian grammatical term that indicates that the noun or pronoun assist in the carrying out of an action, you are required to switch to the accusative case ending.

Language Phrases Glossary

interrogative

Words used to ask questions, such as who, what, when, where, and why.

Language Phrases Glossary

macron

A small, horizontal mark above the vowel that indicates a long vowel sound. Make the vowel sound like its name.

Language Phrases Glossary

nominative case

When noun or pronoun is the subject of the sentence, you are required to switch to the nominative case ending.

Language Phrases Glossary

prepositional case

A grammatical case that indicates that the noun or pronoun is the object of a preposition, you are required to switch to the accusative case ending. Used with the Russian prepositions: v (v; in), na (nah; on), o (oh; about), and ob (ohb; about).